Method of making tires.



4 m E E v M 5 @2 4w Rm 4 fi nnu u In a m WW 5 H m a 7 LC 8 f E o E 22 Q:N2 n: B 2 E J. R. GAMMETER.

msmoo OF MAKING TIRES. APPLICATION FILED FEB- L 1914- 1,1 83,553.Patented May16,1916. I

I II SHEETS-SHEET 2 J. H. GAMMETER.

METHOD OF MAKING TIRES.

APPLICATION mm FEB. 7. 1914.

Patented May 16, 1916,

7 sHE'ETs-SHEET 3.

524w, mic c J. n. GAMMETER. METHOD OF MAKING TIRES APPLICATION FILEDFEB. I, 1914.

Patented. May 16, 1916.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

I. RFGAMMETER.

METHOD OF MAKING I APPLICATION man rza. 4.

Patnted May16,

mains-snap J. R. GAMMETER.

METHOD OF MAKING TIRES.

APPLICATI ON FILED FEB- 9I4\ Pat-ented May 16, 1916.

I SHEETSSHEET 6.

J. R. GAMMETER.

METHOD OF MAKING TIRES.

APPLICATIQN FILED FEB- 1, L914- :i.,,53. Patented M 6,1916.

ISHEET HEET 1.

5 4 n q a L I M j FIGQZ.

when, saimn'rnn, or AKRON, onio, nssrcnvor'. TO THE B. r. GGODRICHoonraiw.

or new roan, n. Y., A coaronarron or new YORK.

v a Mn'rnon or MAKlNG Trims;

messes.

Briginal application filed'neeember 2,

To calico/tom z t-may concern:

Be. it known that 1, JOHN R. GAMMETER, a citizenof the United States,residing at $.Akron, countyof Summit, and State of Ohio, haveinventedcertain new and useful Improvements iii-Methods of Making Tires, of

which the following is a specification.

-tirescomposed'of fabric and rubber, and more particularly tothe makingof the outer casingsor shoes of pneumatic tires. Tires of thisnature,'and particularly the larger-"sizes thereof, designed for use onheavy motor rvehicles, commonly comprise a main body portioncomposed ofa number of layers of fabriclaid-one "upon another and held togethe'rbya suitable-binder, usually of rubber gi'i'rn with whiclrthe fabric isimpregana'ted, =beads"se cured to the inner edges of .20 the bodyportionfor se'curing the tire to the rim"'and.-- an outertread--snrface on softrubberi While tire-making machines have I been used toL-some extent, it'has heretofore been thefgeneral practice to build up these tiresentirely by hand,-laying upon a core or mold of the configurationdesired for the interior of the tire, a certain number of layers offabric, then securing bead rings to the sides so of the tire followed bymore fabric and finally to apply the rubber tread. I My'machineisdesigned primarily to build up'the-fabric portion of the tire, applyingthe successive layersof fabric upon the core or form and smoothingthemin place without the necessity of utilizing hand'labor' for thispurpose;

My invention involves nertain improvements in the method of makingtires, as will more fully appear hereinafter. I

This application is 'a division of my ap plieation Serial No. 531,045,filed December 2,1909.

r In the accompanying drawings which form .45 a part of thisspecificationyFigure' -1 is a sideelevation of a'tire making machineembodY- .ing my invention;.Fig.- 2 is a detail view" showingaportion'of'o'neof-"the core-supporting arms with the core mountedthereon, and illustrating the operation of theitrimmm rk'niite; Fig. 3is-an elevation of one of theinolls used for forming the' -fabric aboutfthe tree vii-earls and of the; ior carrying Specification of LettersPatent.

1?atented' May is, min.

1909, Serial No. 531,045. Divided and thisapplication filed February7,1914. Serial No. 817,212.

being shown in section; Fig. 4 is a similar view illustrating another ofthe rolls used; Fig. IS an end viewof the machine, looking toward theright in Fig. 1 Fig. 6 is a detail view of the adjustable trimmingknife, parts V b81I1g shown in section; Figs. 7 and S are. Myinventionrelates to the making of sections taken on lines VII-VII and viii-viiirespectively of Fig. 6; Figs. 9,.

10 and '11 are detail views partly in section, show ng the constructionof rolls for perfornnng dilferent operations during the manufacture ofthe tire; Fig. 12 is a transverse section, and Fig. 13 is a sideelevation, parts being broken away, of the fabric shaping guide orstretcher; Fig. 14: is a fragmentary side elevation showing the fabricfeeding rolls and drivingmechanism thereof; Fig.15 is an end' view ofthe driving mechanism shown in Fig. 14-; Fig. 16 is-a sidev elevationshowing the bead carrying ring applied to the core with a partiallyformed tire thereon; Fig. 17 is an elevation of one of the framescarrying the mechanism for layingthe fabric over the bead, showing theside of the same nearest the tire; Fig. 18 1s a. section taken on lineXVIIL-XVIII of Fig. 16; Fig. 19 is a diagrammatic view showing themethod of joining the ends of. v the strips of fabric for making twotires-by means of a leader; Fig. 20 is a diagrammatic view showing oneof the fabric laying disks and. illustrating the manner of engagement ofthe disks with the partially formed'tire;

, Fig. 21 is a diagrammatic view of'an alternative arrangement forputting pressure on I certain of the fabric laying. rolls and disks;

Fig. 22 is a detail side elevation showing a modification of my machinein'which a pair of fabric laying disks is used; Figs. 23 and 2 1 aredetail views in section. and elevation respectively of a device forlocking the disks *or rolls in inoperative position; Fig; 25 is' Y asectional View of one of the disks shown in Fig. 22.

In these detail and which I will describe in the foblowingspecification, but I do not wish to. be

drawings, I have chosen for pur I Y poses of llustrat on a specific modeof carrying out my1IlVeI1t1OI1;'Wl11Cl1 I have sh wn in within thepurview. of my 'in'vention, and

any suitable apparatus may be employed in performing it. f f

Referring to the drawings in detail, 1 is abed-plateupon which ismounted a pair of uprights, 2. and 3 carrying the main shaft 4, theforward end of which projects in front o'f the'uprights." Upon the over:

" hanging end of this shaft I provide means for supporting the core orring; 5,".about which the tire is'to be formed. The means"employedforthis purpose preferably comprises a chuck'6, having threeoutwardly projecting: arms -7, with V-shapedextremities 8, adapted toengage within a 'V-shaped groove'9, cut in the inner face of theinwardly projecting fiange 10 of "the core.

The chuck may" be of any usual or'well known construction such as thatof. the

chucks commonly used for holding work upon turning lathes, in which byuse of .a suitablekey or wrench engaging a nut, such as 11, appropriatemechanism within the chuck may be operated to simultaneously forceoutwardly or contract all of the arms 7. By this 'means the propercentering of the core or ring 5, is insured. It is deemed unnecessaryto. illustratethemechanism of this chuck indetail, as any of the wellknown constructions adapted to the purpose may be used.

, For driving the shaft 4:, and rotating,.the chuck and ring carriedthereby, any suitable mechanism may be employed, preferably a "worm gearmounted'on the ,rearqend of shaft t and engaged by a worm 21, carried bya shaft 22 The latteris adapted to be .driven from either of the ulleys23 or 24:, by belting from any suitable source of power. A clutch, 25,maybe usedfor connecting the pulley 23 to the shaft 22, suitable leversor other connections (not shown) being provided for operating thisclutch.

26 is a similar clutch for connecting pulley 2ft to'the shaft whendesired. Two pulleys of different. sizes are provided in order that theapparatus may be driven at different speeds, as will be obvious. Shaft22 is preferably provided also with a hand wheel 27 by which it may berotated to adjust the "position of the ring as may be found necessary instarting or .completing the former tionof the tire. Fixed upon one endof the bed-plate 1 is a base30 upon which is mounted an upright 31provided with bearingrecesses and 33. The upr1ght is preferably mountedtoslide on the base 30 toward or from them-e carrying ring 5. A'

' screw. 34 operatecljby hand wheel 35 and .In. the bearing 32 is.mounted the shaft 37 of a reel 38 carrying a roll 38 of the t 6 5working in a nut 36 carried by the upright, provides means for adjustingthe position of y the latter. a

fabric from which the body of the tire is to ric from adhering.

be formed, the g'iii m "sire forming ram; being laid upon and rolled uwith a strip of ungummedfabric or liner as it is called,

which prevents the layers of gummedfab- To prevent the too readyrotation of this reel, the shaft 37 is preferably provided with a brakedisk- 39 'against which bears av brake s'hoe 40 mount- ..ed at, one endof an arm 41 pivoted on a-pin 1,42. 011 the other end of thearm 41slides 'a weight 43, which may be secured in any desired positionto-producethe proper brak-' .ing effect, by a set screw 44.- In theupper bearing recess 33,"which is preferably of considerable depth, ismounted a reell45 which is'driven through friction from the roll38 andupon which is wound the .un-

[gumrned strip, or liner coming from the roll. As theroll 38 isunwound,'the liner being takenup by the reel 45 will increasethediameter of the latter, the deep bearing re- ,eesses'33 permitting theshaft of the, reel to rise correspondingly.

L Also mounted-on the upright. Ell are a pair of longitudinally alinedsleeves 50, one

being carried by each of the side members of the upright and eachprojecting. at each 'side of its side member to form a pair ofcylindrical bosses To the two bosses thus formed projecting from.theinner sides of the side] members of the upright 31 aresecured a pair ofupwardly extending arms ed a pair of depending arms 60, secured to thelower'ends of which are boxes 61 carrying a shaft62. To the shaft 62 isfixed a drivingwheel 63, preferably provided, with a rubber tire '64:,or other suitable friction surface adapted to bear against the core orring 5 or the fabric wound thereon and receive motion from the latter.Means are also provided for driving the shaft 56 and the belliedroller57 from the shaft 62, these means being shown in this case as a pair ofsprocket wheels 65 and 66, connected by a chain 67. Gears 68 and 69 arealso'preferably" provided for driving the roller 55 from the shaft 56.1It is obvious that any other suitable form of driving connections may beused in' place ofthose described. For holdingthe wheel 63 in drivingcontact with the ring 5, or partially formed tire, I provide a frame 70pivoted at one end to the shaft 62 and having projecting from the otherend of a forked lever 73 fixed to a shaft 74 jour thereof a shaft 71,the free end of which slides in a box 72 pivoted between the arms endofthis'shaft "is'secured a hand lever having a pawl '76 engaging with afixed."

naled in the upright 31. To the projecting notched segment 77.- A spring78 is compressed between the box. 72 and the hubof a hand wheel 79screwing on a threaded portion of the shaft 71 and forces the frame andthe drivinggwheel carried thereby-forward, the tension of thespring-being regulatedby the position of the lever fii. The

" tension of the spring may also be adjusted by rotating the hand wheel7 9.- Also supported on the shaft I (of farms 80 having slots 81 intheir-outer ends. The rear ends of said'arms are bent; upwardly as shownat 92 and provided with slots 93 arranged concentrically with shaft 62.By means of, bolts ,94 passing through the slots 93, thea'rms may besecured to the frame 70 in desired angular position. -Secured'tothesearms 80 area pair of segmental bars 82. These bars are-preferablypivoted-to the arms by means of-bolts 83 passing through the slots 81,whereby the position ofv the bars relatively to thearmsmay be adjusted..From' theiupper .endof. each of the arms 82 projectsa radialstandard 81 upon each of which is mounted a box 85. The boxes are slidably.mounted uponthese radially disposed standards. means such as set screws86 being provided for securing them in desired'position thereon. In

- the boxes 85 is journaled' a transverse shaft 87 upon which is mountedaroller 88-adapted to bear upon the ring 5, or partially formed tire andsupport the free end of the bars 82. This roller 8,8"is preferably splitas at 89, its two halves being urged togetherby springs 90.- It ispreferably .formed of some yielding material such as soft rubber, inorder that it may fit smoothly on the layers of fabric wound upon thecore 5, and its extended flanges 91 closely embrace the side of thepartly formedtire. 1 f

Also supported by the bars 82 is the fabri shaping guide or shoe 100.This ispreferably secured tov the bars by means of bolts 101 passingthrough slots 102 therein, where by a limited circumferential adjustmentof the guide is permitted. The guide preferably consists of a singlepiece of metal shaped to conform-closely to the outer surface of thecore and tapering to a comparalZlX'ely thinedge 103 atits upper endwhich is brought as close as possible to the surface of the core, orpartially formed tire thereon.

The outer surface of the guide is made smooth to permit the fabricto-slide thereover. The fabric coming from. the reel 38 and passingunder reel 45, .which takes up the liner, passes over rolls 'and 57slides over this guide and is cupped to the*approx 1- mate shape of-th'etire section, being laid orr the core bytheroll88. The fabric is, ofcourse, treated in the usual manner ,with a 62 are-a pair rotation ofthe core.

suitable rubber compound and being in a sticky condition adheres closelyto the core. For forming the fabric to the undercut portion of the'eore,I provide means which will act uponfthe fabric as it leaves the a roller88 These means comprise a pair of rollers 110 preferably formed of softrubher, or other-yielding material, and journaled upon short shafts 111.Any suitable means may be used-for caprying the shafts, which willpermit the roll s to be drawn to-Q gether when in action and readilythrown in the machine. T For this purpose I have shown the shafts asbolted to sleeves 112 and 113. When the bolts are tightened, the

shafts and' sleeves will be heldfinrigid relation with each other, butby loosening thev bolts the inclination-oftheshafts may be out ofthe waywhen a"cofinpleted tireis to Y be removed, and a new core or ringinserted readily adjusted. The sleeves are slidably mounted upon arms1141, 120 whichthey are secured in desired position by screws 115, Thearms are journaled on a shaft 116, supported fromthe uprights 2 and 3"in any suitable manner asin boxes 117, carried on theends of shafts 118.For drawing the rollers 110 together any means for-applying such as acontractile spring 119, which may be hooked over the extended ends 123of a constant and even pressure may be used,

bolts 120; When it is desired to separate the roller 110,it ismerelynecessary to unhook one end of the spring119 and turn 'the arms114 about the shaft 116until the rollers are removed from -proximity-tothe tire. The rollers are Preferably so adjusted that when in operationvtheir-axes will be that is,- on the side from which the tire partsubstantially parallel and will pass. in front,

to be acted upon advances, of the axis of The rollers -are preferably ofirregular profilehaving sub-' stantially cylindrical portions 121adapted a greater peripheral speed'than the portions of the tire withwhich they engage. They will tend to pupker or push ahead the part ofthe fabric in? contact with them and take care of the loose fabriccaused by the curve ing of the strip about the core, there being lesstension at this point, thus causing the fabric to conform more closelyto the configuration of'thecore;

In order to form the edge portions of the fabric and to cause them tolie closely against the core orv ring preparatory to application of thehead, I provide a pair of disks 136, arranged to act upon the tire afterit hasjleft the rollerslOO. These disks, which are preferably cuppedslightly, may be supported in any suitable manner, as, for instance,upon short shafts 131 carried by i sleeves 132 and 133 which in turn aresecured to arms 134 journaled on the shaft 116.

The construction of these parts is preferably similar to that of thecorresponding parts for carrying rollers 100, a coiled contractilespring 139, or other suitable means, being provided for drawing thesearms together contact with the fabric on the undercut" portion of thecore through a considerable arc. The short shafts 131 are directed soand. pressing the disks 130 into contact 'with the tire. The shafts uponwhichthe disks that their axes will pass either directly through theaxis of rotation of-the core, or

' a slight distance above said axis, in order to shift the arcs ofcontact of thediskedges "with the fabric slightly. in advanceof the axesof rotation of the disks.

The disks as thus adjusted, 1 while rotating by contact with the fabricexert a peculiar downward drag toward the center of the core, whichcauses the fabric to assume the configuration of the coreandclingclosely thereto. In

,Fig. 20 I have illustrated this diagrammatically, the dotted line 260representing the .line of-contact between the disk edge and the side ofthe tire. These disks are used only while the layers of fabric appliedprior to nthe application'of the bead are being put on, being swung outof the way before the head is applied, and remaining out of actionduring the construction of the remainder of 1 the tire. The disk's arecupped or hollowed 5 :out so as to provide working edges projecting orraised laterally from the disks. This provides for a clearance betweenthe, surface of the. disk and the fabric and permits the working edge tooperate freelyand in the intended manner.

In the manufacture of tires of large sizes, I frequently find itdesirable to use a plurality of disks. 130 upon each. side of the tire,as illustrated in Fig. 22. These disks are not arranged to act upon thetire in the same circumferential line, but are arranged to take hold ofsuccessive portions of the fabric, the first disk 130 acting to smooththe fabric part way around the cross section of the core, while thesecond disk 130" acts.

- further down upon the fabric and smooths the same about'theremziinde'r of the core section. .These disks 130 are preferably mounted'on short shafts 131 bolted to arms 132 'tele'scoping in sleeves 134.- asleeves aresecured to the ends of the short 5 These shafts 230,carried-by bracket. 231, pivotally inthe shaft 116 and slidably mountedupon the shaft 1161:

supported by the main frame. The brackets 231 and the disks supportedthereby are urged toward each other and the disks are held in contactwith the sides of the tire. by means of arms 232 and 233,.one secured toeach of the brackets 231. A cord (see Fig. '21) 234, has one end securedto each of these arms and passes over'sheaves 235, supported by somefixed part 236 of the machine or ment which has been described, alsothat springs may be used for drawing-together the brackets 231, in placeof the cordand weight mechanism, if desired.

For supporting the brackets 231 in raised, or inoperative position, Ipreferably provide a plurality of pins 240, one for each of the brackets231, inclined notches 2411 being formed. in the brackets for engagementwith these pins. To engage the notch with the pin, it is simplynecessary to raise the bracket 231, thus forcing down its arm 232 or 233as the case maybe, and rais-' ing the weight 239 slightly, and thenslide the bracket longitudinally on the shaft 116 toward the pin 240until the notch 241 engages the same,'when the bracket 231 will belocked in raised position. This locking mechanism may obviously beapplied, if desired, to the roll and disk bearing arms shown in,Fig. 1.1

After the desired number of layersof fabric have been applied" to thetire for to the application of the beads, the machine is stopped and therolls and disks having been n'ioved to inoperative position asdescribed, the beads are applied. For apply ing ,these beads, which areusually rings' formed of fabric impregnated with a rubber compound m aplastic or semi-plastic condition, I provide a pair of carrying rings220 having annular recesses 221, shaped to the configuration of theouter side of the heads. I also provide means for centering these ringswith relation to the core, suc h as the three arms 222, securedto thering 220 and adapted to fit within the inner circumference of the core.The beads"223 are placed in the recesses 221 in the rings 220- and thearms 222 being inserted within the inner circumference of the core,-thebeads 223 are forced into contact withthe sides of the partly formedtire, to which they will adhere. The rings 220 can'then be readilyremoved, leaving the beads accurately located upon 'the sides ofgthetire. The tire is now ready for the application of the remammg layers offabric. The invention in bead-placing rings described above is pair ofrolls 140 mounted on short shafts- 141, carried vin boxes 142, bolted orotherrolls 140 are preferably of 'metal and have smooth faces shaped toroll the fabric into the-grooves above the tire beads... The tiltingframes 150 are slidably mountedupon a shaft 151,- which in turn iscarrid in an .upright 1o2,;mounted upon a base 153, se-

cured to the'bed plate '1. Suitable means for {adjusting the positionof.;- this upright upon the base, such: as a-screw l54, carried by thebase and' operating "in a nut 155 car- ;ried by the upright, arepreferably :pro-

vided. .156is a hand wheel for. rotating screw 154. A spring .157 actsto force the frames 150 and consequently. the rolls parriedtherebytoward each 'other and holds the rolls in contact with the .tire. Thisspring; acts on thelowerarms ofbell crank .levers 158 which are pivotedto the upright 152 at 159, theupper arms ofsaid bell crank levers beingbifurcated 'as shown at,.160, and

having trunnions 161 engaging in suitable grooves 162 in bosses 163projecting from.

the frames 150. To withdraw the rolls carried by the frames 150 fromco'ntact with the tire, in order that the frames and. rolls may be movedto inoperative position, Iprovide the bell cranks 158 with hand levers164. VVhenthe frames 150 are swung into operative position as shown .infull lines in Fig.1, they are'supported bya; cross-piece 165 securedtothe upright 152. A similar cross-pie'ce 166 is provided upon the otherside of the upright152 to' support the frames 150 when moved. to theinoperative position shown in dotted lines .in Fig. 1.

The frames are preferably provided with setscrews 167 and 168 forengagement with supports 165 and 166 respectively, the

' screws 167 providing means for adjusting provided with. a tire 175, ofsoft rubber or. other friction material, and a pucker roll" 176-provided with alsoftrubber tire 177 to operative position.-Alsosupported by the tilting frames 150 the elevation of thefram'es andofv the rolls carried thereby when the frames are swung -are boXes 17Ocarrying shafts 171. The

to eachsha-ft 171, are adriving roll .174

shaped to engage the edge of the fabric to r groove formed above thetire bead and forcesand-holdsthe fabric firmly in its p0- .s1tiontherein. The roll 176 while being secured to the shaft 171 againstrotation as by key 179, isfree .to move longitudinally with relationthereto and is constantly wise suitably secured to frames 150.. Theseurged radially outward .with respect to the axis of rotation of the coreby means of of. the bead and .presses'the fabric in contact therewith.The. diameter ofroll 176 being greater thanthat .of roll174, whichdrives it; the roll 17 6 will have. a greater peripheral speed thanthat'of the portion of the tire fabric with which it engages. Therollwill thus have a tendency constantly to force the fabric ahead andsmooth. out or prevent any wrinkles caused by the action of rolls 140and 178 in forcing the fabric into the. groove above the bead. I

Secured also: to each 150 is a .bdx 185 carrying a shaft 180 upon whichis mounted a split roll -comprising an inner "part 181 with a deepflange 1S2 adapted vto engage beneaththe tire bead and smooth down thefabric forming the "base of the tire,.'and an outer part 18-3adapted toengage the outer sideof the bead, Springs 184 force these roll partstogether and into contact with the bead, at thesame time permittingtheroll parts to spread to ac com'niodate the; increasing size of the beadas the successive plies of fabric are applied to it. Each frame 150carries also a knife mechanism for trimming off the-superfluous edges ofthe fabric. Any suitable construction maybe used for this purpose, such,for

instance, as thatshown in .Figs. 6,7 and.8, in which a blade190 isslidably mounted in a groovedguide or holder 191. .The holder is mountedin a slot 192 in' the frame, being held in adjusted position therein'by'means of a pair of clamping collars1'-193-.engaging screw threadedportions of the holder. Set screws 194 are preferably provided forlooking the collars. 193 in position The inner endv of the holder iscylindrical as at 195,

while the part 196, which is located within the slot 192, is flat-sidedor. rectangular.

The knife-blade '190. is moved in and. out through slot 197 in theholder, by means of a hand nut'198 internallythreaded and en;

gaging with teeth 199. out in one edge-of the shank-of the blade. .The'outer portion 200 of the holder is turned-eccentricallyto a smallerdiameter t'o receive this nut, and

is provided with a collar 201 securedin place'bya set screw 202 forretainingthe hand nut in position. ,Theslots 192 being radiallyarranged'with reference to the axis of rotation of the corcpthepositions of the knives may be adjustedlaterally to admit the trimmingof tires of di'fiei 'ent sizes.

The operation of my device isas follows: The frames 150 having beenswung to inoperative position. and arms 114 and 13 1 carrying theirrollers having been moved out of the way, a core or ring is inserted inthe machine andsecured to the chuck As the arms of the latter alwaysmove toward and from the'center of rotation of the chuck equally, thecentering ofthe ring is assured. The split roller 88 nowrests on theouter 4 surface of the ring or core and supports the outer ends of thebars 82 and the guide or shoelOO in proper position relatively thereto,the forward edge of the guide lying in close proximity to the outersurface of the ring. The driving wheel 63 is held in driving engagementwith the ring by the pres sure of spring 78, thet'ension of which isregulated by the hand lever 75. A reel 38, hearing a roll of fabric 38is now placed in the bearing recesses 32. This roll of fabric preferablycomprises a series of strips of .gummed bias fabric 250, each of alength just long enough to make one tire,

thesestrips being joined by leaders 251.

' The latter are preferably also formed .of

bias fabric of similar texture to the fabric used for forming the tiresand are impregnated with rubber and vulcanized. The

band'of strips of gummed fabric and leaders thus formed is rolled upwith a. strip. of ungummed fabric or liner, as already described. Aleader 251 is secured to the freeend .of the first strip of gummedfabric. In starting ,the tire this leader is carried over the roll 55,the convex or bellied roll 57, and the guide shoe v 100, the end of itbeing applied to the ring or core 5 to which it is secured by a suitablecement or otherwise. The end of the liner is rolled about the reel 45.The arms 114 and 134 are now swung to bringthe respective rolls anddisks carried thereby into operative position, in which they are held bytheir springs 119 and 139 respectively. Power is now applied to shaft22, which through the worm 21 and worm wheel 20 rotates the ring in thedirection indicated by the arrow in Fig. l. The driving wheel 63 willnow begin to rotate and will, through the chain 67 and gearing 68 and69, positively drive the rolls 55 and 57.

The diameters of the driving wheel 63 and rollf57 and of the sprocketsand 66 are so proportioned that the peripheral speed of the centralportion or crown of the roll 57 is somewhat less than that of theoutside of the core or ring, usually about 15 per cent. less. Theperipheral speed of the roll 55 is, however, preferably about equal. tothat of the crown of the roll 57, although I 1,1sa,asa

surface, as by covering it with cloth, or

rubber, in order'to prevent slipping between its surface and the \fabr cpassing over it,

whereby it will be capsechto feed the fabric uniformly to the roll, 57.It will be noted i that the fabric passing between the feeding roll 57and the core or partially completed tire thereon will pass al 'ng aplane substantiallytangent to the su *face of the core and that of theroll. Between the roll 57 and the core, the fabric-will be stretched,owing to the smaller peripheral speed of the former. The stretching willbe greatest in the middle of the strip of the fabric as the peripheralspeed of the inner portions of the core to which the edges of the fabricare to be applied is less than that of the outer circumference of thecore and usually no greater than that of the roll 57. The leader 251 isused in order to equalize the stretch in the strip of tire formingfabric and produce the same condition in it at the starting andcompleting 0f. the tire asexists during the remainder of the formationthereof. Aftel the core has been rotated to such an extent that the endof the gummed fabric has been drawn into contact therewith by theleader. and has become firmly attached thereto, the leader, which is ofsuch a length as to extend but a part of the way around the core, isremoved. The rotation of the core is then continued, and .thewindingupand laying of the gummed tire forming fabrifcis begun. differencebetween the rate with which the fabricis fed over the rolls 55 and 57and the rate at whichitis taken up by, the rotating core, the fabricmust stretch between the roll 57 and the core. 'f During this stretchingoperation the fabric-is dragged over the guide or shoe 100 which gives amuch more pronounced stretch to the middle portions of the fabricstripthan to the edges of the latter, thus causingthe fabric naturallyto assume the cup shape which it must occupy when a part of the tire. Byproperly designing the outline of the guide 100 and the shape 'of itsforward As the result of the 1 edge 103, over which the fabric slid s tothe j tire, the relative stretch of the iflerent parts of the fabric canbe determined to a nicety. The circumferential adjustment of the guidein the slots 102 also affects the relative stretch of the differentparts of the fabric, the stretch f in the middle of. the fabric beinggreatest when the guide is in its most advanced position. This guide orshoe 100 has the very important function of supporting the strip offabric out of contact with the core or partially formed tire. thereonwhile the stretching operation is taking place, thus permitting thedifferentparts of the fabric to adjust themselves under the.

messes varying tensions to which they are subjected I and to assume thecupped shape which, the" fabric is to occupy when incorporated'in thetire, before the'fabric slides upon the core or tire and adheresthereto. If the I fabric were permitted to pass directly from the roll57 to the rotating core it would be come attached to the latter, or tothe'partially formed tire thereon, before it has an opportunity tobecompletelystretched-or' to assume its final; configuration,--the resultbeing, that when rolled downupon the sides of the core it would not lieflat, but would tend to wrinkle and would be subjected to uneventensions in the completed tire. This feature of my invention I regard asof great value, although in certain cases, particu larly in making tiresof small sizes, it may be dispensed with. The fabric is now/so formedthat it will .lie closely to-the Outs? portions of the ring and asthelatt'er vcon-.

tinues to revolve the fabric will pass under the split roll 88, whichsmooths it down over the top half of the ring section. Therolls .110come next into action, shaping the fabric to the undercut portion of thering section, as already described. The action: of these rollsisfollowed by that of the disks 130 which complete the operation ofshapits ing and rolling the fabric to the sides of the ring and causing-'it to adhere thereto throughout its section.

- The revolution of the ring is continuedafter the first layer has beenapplied, the

second thickness being laid; overthe first, and so on, until the des rednumber of layers prior to the application offthe beads" have been puton. As will be seen, the roller 88 will be lifted slightly by thesuccessive layers of fabric, carrying with it bars Y82 and the guide100, which will thus always just neath it. rolls 55 and 57 are drivenfrointhe driving clear the layer of fabric immediately be- It will alsobe seen that as the wheel 63, which takes its motion from the outersurface of the tiresofar as" builtup,

the ratio of the peripheral speed of the'outerl surface of the partiallyformed tire to that of the roll 57 will remain constant regardless ofthe increasing diameter of the former. If this were not the case theperipheral speed of the tire as the additional layers .were put on andits diameter increased, would correspondingly increase, and supposingthe peripheral speed ofthe roll 57- to remain constant, the successivelayers of fabric wouldbe, subjectfto a gradually 111- creasing stretch..The result would be'the production of atir e,'the outer layers, ofwhich were under greater tension than the inner, and thus compelledtoltake an excessive proportion of the stress. tension in the outerlayers of course is not great audits existence would not constitute avital detect, but I regard it'as an-advam This excess applied tothe'side's of the partially formed tire.- As the latter is stickyjandthe beads also are usually covered or impregnated with rubber compound,they: will adhere to the tire in their proper location. I It is unformedbysimply notching the edges .ofthe fabric strlp as indicated at 224. Thehand levers 164 are now drawn-out, the frames- 150 swung to operativeposition as shown.

in full lines in Fig.1, 'and'the hand levers released, permitting thespring'157 to force the frames toward each other. "Thisbrings necessaryto completely sever flthe strip of fabric when applying the bead'sfhsthey inay be titted t6 the part of the tire the rolls 140, carried bythe shafts 141, the

rolls 174, 176 and 178 carried by the shafts 171 and the split rolls l8land 183,-i'nto'cons tact-With, their several respective parts [of V thetire and beads as abovedeseribed; .1 The knife blades 190 have,previously been withdrawn to inoperative position aswill lb'e'understood. 4 The-machine 'isflagain started,

1 the guide and rolls 88 and continuing their normalacti on. The fabricis'now la1d over the bead, its edges hanging ,more

or less loosely over the latter until the rolls are reached. 1 Theserolls force the fab ric into the grooves above the tire beadsfasindicated in Fig. t. The rolls carriedQ-by the shafts, lZl next comeinto actiomfrolls JH owing to their adhesion to th'ev tire drivg;

ing their respective shafts a'nd through the latter the pucker rolls176, 'the action of which is to force the edges the fabric againstandunder thetirebeads,- and at prevent its wrinkling under the action ofthe loose rolls 178 which carry on the action started by the rolls 140of forcing the fabric intothe groove above-the beads. {The split roll181-183 next takes up the operla- 9 not, the roll part 183 holding thefabric closely. to the outer portion of the head where it has alreadybeen laid,and the inrier roll portion 181, with its deep flange 18 2turning'the' fabric under the bead and are;

ing it closelythereagainst to form the foot of the tire; The springs184tiserve-tof keep theseroll parts in contact with their work,

at the same time permitting t'lienito'spread "asthe thickness of thebead increases due to the addition of the successive plies of fab-Allowance is also made for the increasing size of the tire by means ofthe ric.

spreading apart of the frames which are'yieldably held together by thepressure loo the same time push the fabric ahead j and E of pring 157.This operation is'continued until a sufficient number of layers offabriohave been applied to form the completed body portion of the tire whenthe band of fabric coming from the roll is severed. If the strips offabric forming the roll 38 have been measured off with sufficientexactness,

,the junction between the end of a strip and one of the leaders 251 willnow have been reached and this severing will .merely'consistindetaching'the end of the leader from the end of the strip of fabric. Iftoo long a'strip of fabric has been used, the strip will be actuallysevered at this point and the surplus length detached from the leader.The roll of fabric is thus left in condition for the immediate startingof another tire, the leader being ready for application to a new core,which can be put in the machine as soon as the old core with the tirethereon, is removed. After the fabric strip has been parted, knives 190are forced into contact with the ring or core, cutting through thesuperfluous inner edges of the fabric, and the ring and tire rotated,preferably at high speed, to trim off these edges throughout the entirecircumference. The tire is now ready for the application of the softrubber tread surface whichmay be applied thereto in any suitable manner,either before or after its removal from the machine. After this treadsurface is appliedthe tire is ready for vulcanizing, which 'ispreferably accomplished ..by placing it while still on the ring 5 in asuitable mold and subjecting it to heat in any usual'or Well knownmanner.

Having thus described. my invention, "I. claim:

1.' Theimprovement in theart of manufacturing tires composed wholly orin part 'of fabric, consisting 'in shaping the fabric to substantiallythe configuration it is to occupy in the completed tire, and then whileso shaped incorporating said fabric into the tire.

. 2. The improvement in the art of manufacturing tires composed whollyor in part of fabric, consisting in first stretching the strip witha-longitudinal tension of unequal strength throughout its width, thencurving the fabric transversely in the same direction in which thefabric will be curved when incorporated into the tire, and thenincorporating the fabric while so curved into a tire.

' 3. The improvement in the art of manufacturing tires composed whollyor in partof fabric, consisting in first preparing a strip of biasfabric; second, stretching said fabric longitudinally; thirci shapingsaid fabric to substantially the configuration of a tire, and fourth,forming said fabric While so shaped into the tire.

4. The improvement in the art of manufacturing tires composed wholly orin part of fabric, consisting in subjecting the fabric to a longitudinaltension of unequal strength throughout the width of the same, causingthe fabric under tension to assume approximately the shape it is to holdwhenincorporated in the tire, and then incorporating said fabric in thetire.

5. The improvement in the art of manufacturing tires composed wholly orin part of fabric consisting in causing the fabric to assume the shapeof a tire having under-cut portions, and incorporating the fabric soshaped directly into a tire.

6. The improvement in the art of manufacturing tires composed whollyorfinpart it during the shaping process.

8. The improvement in the art of manufacturing tires composedwholly orin part of fabric consisting in providing a greater longitudinal stretchto themiddle portion of the fabric than to the edges thereof, shapingthe fabric to substantially the form it is to occupy in thecompletedtire, and incorporating the so-shaped-fabric into the tirewithout'changing substantially the configuration assumed by it duringthe shaping process.

9. The improvement in theart of manufacturing tires composed wholly orin part of fabric consisting in feeding fabric from a feeding device toa forming device, and intermediate these devices stretching and shapingthe fabric by cupping it while urging its edges inwardly to form theunder cut portions of the tire.

JOHN R. GAMMETER.

\Vitnesses: v

' R. M. PiERsoN,

WALTER K. MEANS.

